my small wonder girl

we have quiet mornings when brothers are at school.
we play with little things and talk about all kinds of life.
she is remarkably grown up when they aren't around. she feels more like a 4 year old than one that is 2.
so much of life i've never told her, she already knows. i'm in awe of the confident and patient young lady i have been blessed to love.

there are a great many things i need to learn from this small wonder girl.

the hamster charmer {my creature boy}

the babies reached 3 weeks of age past weekend, and at long last, my creature boy got to hold his babies.
this was his reaction:

all of that tedious hamster veggie chopping and late night panicking was well worth it to see his undying love for these little creatures. he has spent every day doting on them and snuggling each one. and to be honest, they are actually quite sweet. they sit so calmly and because they are so young, they are very tame, especially with rowan. he's even become quite a pro and telling the difference between the boys and girls (a skill that is quite difficult to master, let me assure you).

one evening this week, clint took ALL of the hamsters out at once to let rowan play with them on the floor. within 5 minuets we were scrambling to get them quickly back in their cage...those babies are FAST! the kids thought it was really funny to watch them scrambling all over the floor.
me? not so much.

the next morning, foster woke me up at 6 am saying "mom, i let the hamsters out and now i can't find them!!"
say what???
let me tell you, i've never woken from sleep and raced downstairs so quickly in my whole life. i must have absorbed hamster scamper powers because my scamper skills are top notch.

the sweet kid had taken them all out and put them on a towel (just like we did the night before) but they scattered so fast he only managed to snag two and put them back in their cage.
trying hard not to panic (and make him feel worse) we carefully pulled out all of the furniture and began to see little legs scampering everywhere.
it would have been quite cosmical if i wasn't so irritated to have hamsters all over my house :)
we did eventually catch them all and promptly made a "one hamster at a time rule."

anyone want a hamster? i promise they won't get loose... or at least i almost promise :)

we have a really small backyard.
so small, in fact, that ants feel cramped when they scamper about.
but somehow, we squeezed a craigslist trampoline in one corner of the yard last week, making our yard one half trampoline and one half yard.
while we appear entirely ridiculous to have added such a large item to such a small area, two little boys think it's the best thing in the whole world.
they spend hours each day jumping and playing warrior and finding new ways to giggle and play.
i think it's the best item we've ever craigslisted.

i've been working on our mini garden (near the giant trampoline) and i love listening to them when they think no one hears. their play is so creative and silly and wonderful.
they love each other the way i always dreamed.
the way best friends play and irritate and giggle.
they are wild and crazy and kind and wonderful.

 (disclaimer: i know trampolines are somewhat controversial. ours has elastic instead of springs and nets and pads and is designed for kids.)

blog friends {in real life}

we had the pleasure of spending a few days with 2 lovely guests this past weekend. i've been crazy excited anticipating their visit, and, if i'm being honest, knowing they were coming helped motivate me to get all kinds of fun projects done :)

i've learned so much over the past few years about the way that our Creator has designed our family.  the adoption journey has also taught me how God uses people in our lives and has a way of connecting friends in ways that can only be explained as being a part of God's unique and beautiful plan.
my friend Ashley has been one of the most wonderful blessings to me and to our family. we met as i was sewing and selling etsy items a few years back, trying desperatly to fund our adoption. she sweetly posted about the things i was making on her blog, Under the Sycamore, and hundreds of her readers purchased items and enabled us to fund a large portion of our adoption, even before we had emery's referral. a few months later, Ashley and her husband decided to start the process to adopt from China as well. little did we know then, her daughter would be born a month before we met emery. our girls are only a year apart and were both born with beautiful cleft lips.

although we had never met in person, she encouraged me through the agony of waiting to meet emery, through the difficult days that came when my daughter was in pain after surgery. she was there for me as i processed and grieved the loss of emery's cleft, when i needed someone who understood the things that can't be explained. she rejoiced the triumphs and little moments that led to amazing progress and growth and i've cherished her passion for Christ and her family.
when her daughter, Little One, came home in the fall, it felt as though we could finally rest, knowing her baby girl was home at last.

this weekend, we had the pleasure of finally meeting and our dream of seeing emmy and Little One together at long last came true. they played and bopped around together, wiggling on the couch like old friends. in fact, they were so wiggly, we could hardly snap a picture of them together without the blurr of business :)
it was a fantastic time of talking life and adoption letting the kids run wild outside. Ashley and Little One are gorgeous and kind and so much alike. when you see them together, you know they are mother and daughter. Little One is brave and oh-so breathtaking. the kids were so enamored by her and kept asking me if we can have "a baby Little One" of our own :)
it brings tears to my eyes when i think of how special it is to see these petite little ladies together, knowing how their lives have been entertwined, long before they were even born. i've been praising God all week at His graciousness in allowing me to be present for the story He is writing through these increadible warrior girls. Ashley is among the most real and genuine people i've ever met and i wish i could spend every day lounging by the trampoline sipping tea and chasing kiddos with her :)

 

 

 

now to find some way to move Pennsylvania closer to Oklahoma :)